Love Potion No 19
by faerietaleredux
Summary: In terms of Sophomore Chemistry, three Lucas brothers and a certain sometimes clumsy girl make for a dangerous combo--at least where chemical compounds are concerned. But, turns out, an experiment-gone-wrong might be just what Nick needs. Prologue up.


_Note: this story, as a whole, is for Padma (ie __**.applepips **__& __**ink-stained-frenzy**__). But the prologue is also dedicated to my twitter and FF buds, __**Hey-Hayley**__ and __**Sweetgalsab**__. _

_And, Kendra,__ please__ don't be mad! This came out before I could stop it. I promise to spend at least an hour working on Misadventures tonight, to make up for lost time. ;)_

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_Prologue_

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The livechat had not gone well. At least according to the JONAS publicist.

Kevin was sweet and charming, as usual. But that was the only ray of light in the whole broadcast. Joe showed up for all of two minutes, before more pressing engagements called him away. And Nick. Oy! Nick turned his usual quiet brooding into a snarkfest--unable to hide his utter disdain for the whole thing.

His dad said he'd come off as cocky and disinterested. Arrogant even.

"Nick, what did I tell you about smiling once in a while?" his mom had said, on speakerphone. "Show your teeth! Remember _your fans_ pay the bills."

But sometimes Nick didn't want to smile, didn't want to pretend like everything was okay. When it wasn't. His mom loved to bring up "his fans," like those thousands of people formed a single unit they had to cater to all costs. He found himself fighting an underlying resentment for that collective force.

Which was sad, because he really could _love _some of them.

Like when he walked into a hospital room full of kids dealing with problems he didn't even want to imagine—Cancer. Abuse... Those little heroes would take one look at Nick and their whole face would light up. Literally! Like he was the best thing since ice cream. _And why?_ What he done to deserve that kind of pure, unadulterated _love_?

Nothing he could put words to.

One little girl with pigtails had had sickle cell anemia since she was born. But you'd never hear her complain. She was a real trooper--trying to make everyone else feel better when she was the one in pain. Nick had been hesitant to approach her, she looked so frail. But when she came up to him with a daisy in her hand and smiled, her two front teeth missing, it was like_ magic_.

Nick hugged her for a full minute before her mom came and took her away. And even then it was hard. A part of him didn't want to let go.

Fans like that made him want to be a better person. To make a difference. They showed him there was good in the world.

But for every sweet little fangirl, there was a mob of thoughtless jerks doing everything they could to reduce what he and his brothers had accomplished to something... worthless. Even in their own LiveChat session, most of the comments made the world look full of ignorance and stupidity.

Even things that used to make it all feel worth it—like writing a song, and sharing a piece of your heart with the world—had started to feel more like routine than something special. Just more material to be developed upon demand.

There were moments when he'd give it all back—the fame, money, celebrity stardom—for just one chance to be… _himself_. Or at least the person he was before the JONAS machine took over his life. But even that was so long ago the memory of his "normal" self had faded like white-washed blue jeans on a clothesline.

What, had he been _seven_ when they first had him performing on Broadway?

At least it was fun then. Pure fun.

But things hadn't been fun in a long time. He worked every day of his life. Traveled anywhere and everywhere—endorsing, promoting, performing. Only to repeat it all again the moment upon return—endorse, promote, perform. Whatever was asked of him—he complied. They all did.

Yes, everyone in young Hollywood played the game—responding to every interview question with canned answers your publicist drilled into your skull—reactions that couldn't be misread, whatever the context. Because if you tried to tell the truth—even about something trivial, like how you felt about having every moment of your life serve as a subject for commentary—you guaranteed yourself a frontpage slot on _Yahoo! News_, with a big and bold "Ungrateful Disney Star" label right below your headshot.

Maybe his brothers didn't have the problem with it he did. They always seemed completely grounded—able to come off as charming, even when flustered or annoyed. But Nick's frustration was getting to the point where he couldn't temper it with fake smiles anymore. It was getting too old.

He felt the bitterness eating at him, but couldn't seem to stop it.

No matter what he did, he felt… _hollow_.

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_I know the prologue is quite angsty (and maybe even a little melodramatic), but I'm hoping the second half will provide some amusement, while attempting to wrap things up. Can you guess where this story is going? I'd love to hear your theories. ;)  
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